Remember when English was the language everyone wanted to learn, everyone around the world needed to learn? 

A question recently on Jeopardy television show asked what the predominant language will be in years to come?  The answer: Mandarin. 

It's not Chinese, but here in Grand Rapids the number of people studying the Chinese language continues to rise.  America is not the economic leader any longer. 

Really, when you come to think of it, what do we really produce here?  As China continues to grow economically a lot of American schools are trying to prepare students academically to compete and do business with China.

We've got a way to go, trust me!  When I traveled to Israel last month and talked to families from all over the world and their children, 7 and 8 year old kids were already speaking three different languages.  How many different languages do American kids at the age of 7 or 8 speak fluently?  How many languages, outside of immigrants, do adults in America speak?  Can you say "Catch Up."

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